Daevas -I- ✔️

Chapter 10.3: Darkness

"Perhaps an old friend would like you to pay a visit," Rein quipped, his eyes locking onto Ari's. But Ari had no words in response, his curiosity gnawing at him despite his reluctance.

Ari peered down into the chasm of the temple, much larger and darker than it seemed from the outside. "There is something ominous down there. That is all I know for certain. But we will not know what it is unless we go down and see for ourselves." He strained to hear any sounds from within, but only the incessant tapping of water on the cobblestone from last night's rain reached his ears.

"I will go first," Rein said, extending his hand in front of Ari. "If something happens to you under my watch, Freir would never forgive me, and I could not live with myself."

"Because he means everything to you?"

"He is my everything," Rein corrected.

"And is that why you have disliked me for so long? Because I mean something to him and that takes away from you?"

Rein ignored the question and started down the pillar, carefully placing his feet into notches as if descending a mountain. As he began to disappear into the darkness, Ari followed, remembering each notch Rein used. It took a moment for Ari's eyes to adjust. Gradually, he made out a corridor to their left, still intact despite the temple's general disrepair.

"To the left, Rein. Do you see it? A hall." Ari looked around for a way to help Rein now that he was below the threshold. Vines grew from the stone sides, sturdy enough to hold a grown man's weight. "There are some vines close to you. Can you reach them?"

"I see them." Rein reached for a vine, tugged on it, then shifted his weight onto it.

Ari leapt from the pillar onto the stone floor. Rising, he found the inside of the temple eerily familiar. It was large and spacious, too wide for something built for humans. Pillars, some fallen and others upright, were draped in vines. A few massive ones held up what remained of the roof. Moss blanketed some walls, but the corridor they were in was free of it. Strange markings, similar to those on Auovin, covered the walls and even the floor.

Ari went to touch the ground's runes, but Rein's grunts interrupted him. He quickly rushed to Rein's side and helped him up the rest of the way.

"I cannot see a thing. Let me fetch my tinderbox. In the meantime, find me a stick or something to light."

Ari nodded and ventured into the doorway, curiosity quelling his fear. His boots kicked over small stones and debris. The room at the bottom of the stairs was filled with light from a cracked, painted window, casting a sea of colors around the sill. Ari approached, trying to discern the picture on the glass, but a snicker distracted him.

He closed his eyes, focusing on the sound. Besides the water dripping on stones, he heard nothing but the snicker. When he looked down, bones and remnants of swords and broken wooden shields lay scattered. The blade was rusted, and the wood smelled of mold. Ari did not dwell on the fate of the owners of those bones. He searched for dry wood, bending down to inspect a promising piece when something skittered through the shadows.

Ari drew his dagger before picking up the long piece of wood. The snicker returned, followed by footsteps receding down the stairs. Ari held his breath, only releasing it when the footsteps faded. Whatever was down there, as Rein suspected, was real. Ari backed out of the room, never turning his back to the stairs, and found Rein where he left him, a small fire burning.

"You found one? Thank the gods. Give it here."

Ari handed the wood to Rein, who tore a piece of his shirt and wrapped it around the stick. The torch illuminated the ruins, revealing the gargantuan temple they were in.